holmes



140. 620,073. I Patentd Feb.- 2,18%.

- F. s. HOLMES.

SAFE.

(No Model.)

.9 f Egg 7124/6 JMW y- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FREDERICK S. HOLMES, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO W'ILLIAM I-I. HOLLAR, OF SAME PLACE.

SAFE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 620,073, dated February 21, 1899.

Application filed April 24, 1897.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK S. HOLMES, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Burglar-Proof Safes, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact specification.

As so-called burglar-proof safes are now constructed it is possible to employ an electric current, usually conveniently obtainable where such structures are employed, to burn holes through the steelwork of the walls or doors of such structures. The mode of procedure is to use the incandescent or other obtainable electric current by connecting any metal portion of the vault or safe to one elec trio conductor, attaching to the other conductor a carbon provided with a shield or other convenient means for handling, and then forming and maintaining an electric are between the carbon and the wall to be attacked until the metal is melted, and an opening (which may be made at about the rate of an inch a minute) is formed for the introduction of explosives to force an entrance.-

It is the object of my present invention to avoid the possibility of thus forming holes in vaultwork within any length of time generally at the disposal of the burglar. I accomplish this object by combining with the safe or vault structure,between the metallic plates of which it is made, drill-resisting pieces which are suitably held in place in the vault structure, which supports them through the medium of insulating material, which electrically insulates the pieces from the rest of the structure and from one another. The pieces are called drill-resisting pieces because they are intended to be of some material which will resist or oppose an attempt to drill through this portion of the safe, and especially by the electricarc. They are preferably in the form of rods suitably arranged so as to not leave sufficient space ina direct line past them to permit an attack on the metallic plates beyond. They are preferably insulated by means of a filling of non-conductive material -such as cement, indurated fiber, and the likeoccupying the entire space between the plates and by which the pieces or rods are embedded. As a further safeguard I prefer to arrange the several plates so that Serial No. 633,827. (No model.)

there shall be no metallic connection between any two plates, the insulating filling being made to insulate and space apart said plates. I prefer, however, while maintaining such insulation not to leave the plates without some effective mechanical connection or tying between them, andfor this purpose I employ at suitable intervals insulated tie-bolts of some suitable form, preferring to use a pcculiar form of insulated tie-bolt forming part of my present invention. By employing a number of such insulating-sections with embedded bars it will be practically an impossibility to force an opening into the structure within any length of time which will ever be at a burglars disposal. I

I prefer to use as insulating material either indurated fiber, vulcanized fiber, or a suitable non-conducting vitreous substance or any equivalent.

My invention will be fully understood upon reference tothe accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 represents in horizontal section a portion of a safe or vault constructed in accordance with my present invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional detail view of a portion of the structure, and Figs. 3 and 4 are detail views of two forms of insulated tiebolts.

1 represents the main body of the vault; 2, the the vestibule; 3, the inner doors, and 4 the outer door, the walls, floor, and ceiling forming the main vault and vestibule or as many of such parts as may be desired, and

both the inner and outer doors are formed of a new composite structure which is substantially the same in principle and constituency for each part and which may be described as follows:

5 represents an outer plate of any metal suitable for the construction of vault-work, and 6 is an inner plate of the same or some other suitable metal.

7 represents intermediate or inner plates of solid metal of any appropriate kind, of which there may be any desired number.

The plates 5, 6, and 7 may be what has been usually used for such purposes or what future experience may dictate to be desirable. Be-

tween each two of the metal plates I intro duce a section made up of the insulated drillresisting pieces, which section preferably extends completely around the vault or safe and through the doors (and may be employed As shown in the detail Fig. 2, I prefer to v employ as the drill-resisting pieces rods 8,

which shall be spaced apart sufficient to avoid contact one with the other or with any other conducting-body and arranged in different rows or series in such a manner that the rods of one row will come opposite the spaces of another row and will make it impracticable to introduce an instrument past them. As the rods will be thoroughly embedded and insulated, it will be quite impossible to destroy them by the use of an electric arc, and each barred insulated section would offer sufficient resistance and consume such time in passing it that several such layers would entail more time in forcing an entrance than will ever be at the disposal of a burglar.

I do not limit myself to the use of rods'or bars, as it isobvious that pieces of metal of any kind difficult to drill, cut, or blow may be employed instead of such bars.

The insulating material also spaces .apart and insulates the respective plates from one another, so that when once through the outer plate 5 and through an insulating-section 8 no current would flow through the next inner plate 7.

A further object of my present invention relates to insulating the bolts or connections between the respective plates thus insulated. Two forms of such tie-bolts are shown in Figs. 3 and 4:.

Referring to Fig. 3, 9 represents a screw countersunk in one of the inner plates-say 5and having on its inner end a nut 10,'within an insulating-socket 11, surrounded by insulation 12. The socket ll is embedded in the insulating-layer of the structure and carries at its outer end means for attaching it to the next outer plate without penetrating said platesuch, for instance, as a threaded shank 13, which is tapped into the next metallic plate, which may be an intermediate plate 7 or anouter plate 6. By this means the plates may be securely bound together mechanically vtih'ile maintaining their insulation e'lectrica ly.

A modified construction of insulating connection or tie-bolt is shown in Fig. 4, wherein the screw 9 passes through the plate 5,through insulating-section 8, and into the next outer plate 6. The neck and head of said screw are-surrounded by insulation 12, so as to avoid establishing electrical connection bep tween the two plates.

A further advantage of my present invention arises from the fact that the insulating material offers ample protection against fire, and the massive and expensive masonry or fireproofing usually employed to surround a safe or vault is thus rendered entirely unnecessary.

Having thus described my invention, the following is what I claim as new therein and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. In a safe or vault, the combination of a supporting structure, drill-resisting metallic pieces, and insulating material which electrically insulates said pieces from said structure and from one another; substantially as explained.

2. In a safe or vault, the combination of a suitable supporting structure, drill-resisting metallic pieces, and non-conducting filling in which said pieces are embedded and by which they are electrically insulated from the rest of the structure and from one another; substantially as set forth.

3. In a safe or vault, the combination of a supporting structure, drill-resisting metallic rods, and an insulating-filling surrounding and embedding said rods, whereby they are electrically insulated from the rest of the structure and from one another in substantially the manner and for the purpose set forth.

4. In a safe or vault, the combination of a supporting stucture, drill-resisting metallic rods, and insulating material which electrically insulates said rods from said structure and from one another, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. In 'a vault or safe construction, the combination of inner and outer walls or plates, a non-conducting filling interposed between said wallsor plates, spacing them apart, and electrically insulating one from the other, and insulated tie-bolts mechanically connecting the walls or plates together; substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

6. In a vault or safe construction, the combination of inner and outer insulated plates,

and insulated tie-bolts inserted through the inner plate and into but not through the'outer plate; substantially as and for the purpose set forth. g

7. An insulating tie-bolt for mechanically connecting electrically-insulated plates in vault or safe construction, comprising a'screw, a nut fitted to said screw, a'socket holding said nut, insulation interposed between the socket and the nut for preventing flow of electricity between them, and means carried by said socket for attaching it to one of the plates to be connected; substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

FREDERICK S. HOLMES.

Witnesses:

C. E. COOKE, K. E. HOLMES. 

